Electric bond for railway-rails or other conductors.



PATENTED MAY 24,1904. J. S. ALEXANDER. 4 ELECTRIC BOND FOR RAILWAY RAILSOR OTHER GONDUGTORS.

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No. 760,947. PATENTED MAY 24, 1904.

J. S. ALEXANDER. I

ELECTRIC BOND FOR RAILWAY RAILS 0R OTHER OONDUGTORS. APPLIU AT iONPILEID FEB. 25, 1903. no MODEL. Y z SHEETSSHEET 2 E [mush/Zonfl/fiwsgd"v $75105: QZcwmwZeP, 1W8 m M m/ UNITED STATES Patented May 24, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN S. ALEXANDER, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent N0. 760,94 7, dated May 24,1904. Application filed February 25,1903. Serial No. 144,938. (Nomodel.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN S. ALEXANDER, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of New York city, State of New York, have inventedcertain Improvements in Electric Bonds for Railway-Rails or otherConductors, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide an efiicient form of electricbond for the adjoining or abutting ends of railway-rails or otherelectric conductors, said bond when in place being practicallyinaccessible without taking the conductors apart, so that it cannot bestolen or tampered with in any way which will impair its efficiency.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional view of parts ofthe abutting ends of two rails provided with an electric bond inaccordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a similar view illustrating themethod of inserting the bond between the rails. Fig. 3 is an end view ofone of the rails, showing the bond-receiving recess therein; and Figs.4: to 7 inclusive,'are views illustrating other forms of rail-bondembodying my invention.

In Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings the abutting end portions of a pair ofrails are represented at 1 and 2, each of these rails having in the enda vertical recess or slot 3 with segmental bottom, these recessesregistering with each other, so as to form between the abutting ends ofthe two rails a chamber of oval shape which is completely inclosed withthe exception of an opening of limited area at the top.

Before the rails are finally brought together a spreader-block 4 isintroduced into the recesses 3, which block conforms in general shape tothe chamber formed by said recesses, but is of lesser dimensions thanthe same both vertically and longitudinally, although it may fill thechamber laterally, the block being preferably formed with oppositespringfingers 5, which can be compressed until they meet, as shown inFig. 1, but which have a constant tendency to expand or separate fromeach other. The rails being properly secured together with their endsabutting, as shown in Fig. 2, and the spreader-block 4 contained in thechamber formed by the recesses in the ends of the rails, a split bar 6,of copper or other metal or alloy constituting a good electricalconductor, is driven into the chamber so that it will be expanded intothe same by the wedge-shaped block 4 and when fully driven home willcompletely fill all of the space in said chamber between the block andthe opposed Walls of the recesses, thereby constituting an efiicientelectrical bond between the two rails.

In case there is any separation of the railjoint due to the contractionof the rails or other cause, the spring-fingers 5 willspread to theextent permitted by said opening, so as to maintain the intimate contactbetween the walls of the chamber formed by the recesses in the endsofthe rails and the bodies 6 of conducting material. Hence an eflicientbond will be maintained under all circumstances.

If desired, the spreader-block may be employed in a position the reverseof that shown in Fig. 1- that is to say, with its free ends at thebottom, as shown in Fig. 4, and this may in many cases be considered thepreferable construction, or a solid spreader-block may be employedinstead of the elastic expansionblock, if desired, although the latteris preferred for the reasons above set forth.

The location of the recesses may be varied. Thus in Fig. 5 I have shownan inclined recess 3 partly in the web and partly in the base-flange ofthe rail, the bond in this case being inserted before the applicationof-the fish-plate, which closes the mouth of the recess and preventsaccess to the bond.

While I prefer to use the segmental recess, because it can be formed bya single cut of a saw or rotary milling-tool and because its outer endor mouth is shallower than the inner portion, and therefore preventswithdrawal of the bond, straight recesses may be used when the wedge isemployed for spreading the bond, and the recess may be formed in but oneof the rails instead of in both, such modifications being illustrated inFigsx6 and 7.

Having thus described my invention, I claim and desire to secure byLetters Patent 1. Thecombination of the adjoining ends of a pair ofelectric conductors, with an elec-' tric bond therefor consisting of abody of conducting material confined in a chamber formed by a segmentalendrecess having its outer end or mouth shallower than the innerportion, substantially as specified.

2. The combination of the adjoining ends of a pair of electricconductors havingachamber formed by a recess extending to the outer faceof said conductors, a wedge shaped spreaderblock contained in saidchamber, and an electric bond for the conductors consisting of a body ofconducting material driven into the recess from the outside of theconductors and forced by said spreader-block into intimate contact withthe opposed walls of the conductors, substantially as specified.

3. The combination of the adjoining ends of a pair of electricconductors, a spreaderto compensate for any opening of the joint betweenthe conductors, substantially as specified.

4. The combination of the adjoining ends of a pair of electricconductors, each having a segmental recess therein, a wedge-shapedspreader block contained in the chamber formed by said recesses, and anelectric bond consisting of a body of conducting material filling thespace between said spreader-block and the opposed walls of the recesses,substantially as specified.

5. The combination of the adjoining ends of a pair of electricconductors, each having a segmental recess therein, a wedge-shapedspreader block contained in the chamber formed by said recesses andhaving opposite spring-fingers with a tendency to spread apart, and anelectric bond consisting of a body of conducting material filling thespace between said spreader-block and the opposed walls of the recesses,substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

JOHN S. ALEXANDERV Witnesses:

WARREN L. SAWYER, HUGH J. G. CLINE.

